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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. game — a match
  3. foot — a measure
  4. march — the month
  5. field — a subject
  6. season — in sport
  7. march — music
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. bulb — for light
  10. field — farmland
  11. bulb — for light
  12. bank — of a river
  13. game — wild animals
  14. field — for sport
  15. bank — for money
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. season — of the year
  18. drill — army training
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. drill — the tool
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. march — the month
  23. drill — a practice
  24. bank — for money

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com